Business leaders today face a political environment fraught with uncertainty—tariffs, regulatory rollbacks, government workforce reductions—and federal pushback against climate progress in the U.S.
Today’s volatility, however, doesn’t change the underlying economic and technological forces making clean energy adoption inevitable.
The market dynamics favoring a cleaner, cheaper, and more independent low-carbon future will prevail, despite the current policy uncertainty. Clean technologies have reached a tipping point as innovation drives costs down and performance upward.
Solar and wind are now the cheapest sources of power in most markets; renewables represented 90% of new capacity additions in the U.S. in 2024. According to BloombergNEF, global investment in energy-transition technologies reached $2 trillion last year, nearly twice the amount for fossil fuels.
Electric vehicles drivers rarely return to gas engines—just as smartphone users don’t go back to flip phones.
As climate policies retreat in the U.S., elsewhere in the world it’s a different story. The European Unionm is moving to ensure its competitiveness in a low carbon world, with a €100 billion Industrial Decarbonization Bank, alongside guarantees through the InvestEU program, to modernize industrial processes and build out clean energy infrastructure. In China, where long-term policy supports its domestic automotive and battery industries, electric vehicles are forecasted to outsell combustion engine cars in 2025, years ahead of the U.S.
Five strategic imperatives for companies
You’re in good company if you see these trends as an opportunity. A recent survey of CFOs by BDO found that over three-quarters are increasing or maintaining sustainability investments in 2025, citing innovation and new business opportunities as primary benefits.
So how should executives respond in the short term while navigating policy uncertainty?
We see five strategic imperatives:
Scale proven solutions
First, double down on what already works. Many proven clean technologies have exponentially falling costs and rising demand. The financial case for renewables, decarbonization, and circular business models gets better by the day.
Installing renewables and battery storage, investing in building electrification, and converting corporate vehicle fleets to EVs solve immediate needs, save businesses and consumers money, and deliver near-term emissions reductions. Energy efficiency cuts costs and improves resilience against inflation.
Partner with and invest in climate tech startups
Companies can increase their readiness for the low-carbon economy by partnering with and investing in climate tech startups. Large organizations have a unique ability to commercialize and scale emerging technologies, making these partnerships especially important today.
Corporations that engage early gain insights into disruptive technologies, accelerate market expansion, and solve operational challenges.
Build and expand ecosystem alliances
At a time of political upheaval, strategic alliances across supply chains, industries, and even competitors provide three advantages: They accelerate cost reductions, de-risk new technologies, and unlock broader markets for clean solutions.
When major corporations cooperate, they spur investments in new production capacity and drive down costs. By forging value chain partnerships, businesses cut green premiums and reduce time-to-market for cleaner products and processes.
Embed sustainability and resilience in core strategy
Sustainability commitments that withstand political backtracking are the ones woven deeply into corporate strategy and performance metrics. For executives who are now reluctant to discuss climate, call it instead by its business outcomes: resilience, independence, operational efficiency, competitiveness, and job creation. It’s hard to argue with authentic commitment to profitable growth that benefits both shareholders and society. For example, sales of sustainability-marketed packaged goods are growing nearly twice as fast as conventional products at a 28% premium on average across the U.S., according to NYU Stern research.
Advocate for smart policy
Nearly 3,000 companies have joined the “America Is All In” climate coalition. Business leaders can turn this momentum into influence through three actions: First, renew calls for implementation of smart industrial policy like the Inflation Reduction Act by highlighting specific benefits to your operations and communities. Second, engage with trade associations to ensure policy positions align with forward-looking climate solutions. Third, demonstrate to policymakers how predictable, lower-cost clean-energy policies enhance American competitiveness.
Staying on track in a shifting world
Businesses bring unique credibility to political dialogue by demonstrating tangible gains—jobs created in America’s heartland, lower costs for consumers, strengthened supply chains—from robust climate policies and regulations that reward innovators.
Companies that hit pause or retreat will find themselves missing out on innovation and market opportunities. American resilience and innovation—supported by forward-thinking investments and smart industrial policy—is the smart bet for the future.
The opinions expressed in Fortune.com commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of Fortune.
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